Jurors reach their decision in Karen Read’s gripping second murder trial

Jurors have reached a verdict in Karen Read’s retrial in the murder of her Boston police officer boyfriend John O’Keefe, who prosecutors allege she killed in a drunken hit-and-run during a blizzard on Jan. 29, 2022.

Jurors found Read not guilty of second-degree murder, the top charge, but guilty of a lesser offense of operating a vehicle under the influence with a blood-alcohol level of .08% or greater.

Special prosecutor Hank Brennan requested 1 year of probation and that Read be entered into a 24D outpatient program – routine penalty for a first drunken driving offense.

 The trial saw more than 30 days of testimony and four days of deliberation. Read was also found not guilty of drunken driving manslaughter and fleeing the scene of a deadly accident. Her first trial on the same charges ended without a verdict last year when jurors deadlocked.

FINAL DEFENSE WITNESS IN KAREN READ TRIAL PUMPS BRAKES ON LEXUS COLLISION THEORY

Cheers of her supporters, who had been waiting for an update across the street from the courthouse, could be heard inside the courtroom. 

For Read’s second trial, the commonwealth appointed a special prosecutor, high-powered defense attorney Hank Brennan, and Read added New York defense attorney Robert Alessi to a team that included Los Angeles’ Alan Jackson and Boston’s David Yannetti.

Jack Lu, a retired Massachusetts judge and Boston College law professor, called the outcome “a stunning victory for the defense” that he said would also help Read in a civil lawsuit against her from O’Keefe’s family.

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The investigation of Read’s case led to investigations into the investigators, leading to an audit into the Canton Police Department and the firing of a state police homicide detective.

“Today’s outcome may bring a sense of relief to some and continue to raise questions for others,” said John McCourt, chairman of Canton’s governing body, the select board. “We encourage members of the community to move forward together, treating one another with respect through civil, constructive dialogue.”

Read found O’Keefe around 6 a.m. lying in the snow and unresponsive. She was with two other women – Jennifer McCabe and Kerry Roberts, both of whom testified against her during the trial.

They said Read called them in a panic that morning and said she couldn’t find O’Keefe.

McCabe testified that on the morning in question, Read repeated three times, “I hit him.”

Paramedic Timothy Nuttall, the first witness to take the stand in the trial, said he overheard Read saying the same thing – three times again.

But the defense argued that a collision never happened.

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The couple and other friends and acquaintances, including McCabe, had been out drinking in downtown Canton before they were invited to an after-party at the home of Brian Albert, who testified in the first trial but not the second.

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O’Keefe was found on Albert’s lawn hours later.

Witnesses said they saw Read’s car outside but neither she nor O’Keefe went into the gathering. She did not testify in her own defense – but she told reporters outside court that she saw O’Keefe go inside before she drove away.

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Throughout the trial, Brennan played clips of Read’s televised interviews, giving jurors a chance to hear not only her version of events, but other commentary she gave journalists, including how she was spiking her own drinks at the bar before O’Keefe’s death and an encounter with O’Keefe’s mother afterward.

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Prosecutors allege Read hit O’Keefe and drove to his house without him. Read’s defense has argued she never hit him, blaming his injuries on a dog attack and an altercation with other men at the party.

Healey administration burns through $830M on emergency shelters in FY25, set to hit $1B

Massachusetts taxpayers are on course to spend $1 billion on the state’s emergency shelter program for FY25 with migrant families making up a significant share of those receiving assistance, according to a new report. 

Gov. Maura Healey’s administration has already spent $830 million so far in FY25 – which started on July 1 – accommodating more than 4,000 families who have been receiving taxpayer-funded shelter, food, education, legal aid and case management.

The costs work out at about $3,496 per week per family, or around $1,000 per person per week for the program, known as the Emergency Assistance (EA) system.

ILLINOIS PROJECTED TO SPEND $2.5B ON MIGRANTS BY END OF 2025, REPORT CLAIMS

The report, a June 16 biweekly update from the Massachusetts Executive Office for Housing and Livable Communities, notes that $679.6 million was spent on direct shelter costs and another $149.7 million on wraparound services, including education aid, work programs, National Guard payroll for security and rental assistance to help individuals exit the system.

Around 1,600 of the total 4,088 families currently in the system are migrants, per the report, although that figure is likely much higher as many migrant families are counted as “Massachusetts residents” for the purpose of eligibility.

The state was overwhelmed by an influx of migrants under the Biden administration and struggled to accommodate them. Many migrants ended up sleeping at Logan Airport as the Healey administration worked to set up temporary shelters, many of which are at hotels. 

There are currently 599 hotel rooms being used under the program and the report states that all hotels being used under the program will be shuttered this year. 

Already, the number of hotels being used as shelters has dropped to 28, down from a peak of more than 100, according to the report.

“The administration is on track to reduce [the] caseload to 4,000 families and close all hotel shelters by the end of the calendar year,” the report states. It follows Healey, a Democrat, saying last month too that all hotel shelters would be shuttered by the end of the year. She said the number of people in the EA system had dipped below 5,000 last month, as well.

BLUE STATE GOVERNOR SOUNDS OFF ABOUT ‘DISTURBING’ ICE OPERATIONS ON AFFLUENT LIBERAL ISLANDS

“Closing hotel shelters is essential to making sure that families are set up for success and to save our state hundreds of millions of dollars a year,” said Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll said last month.

The report comes as the influx of new migrants has all but ended given border crossings are at historic lows.

On Tuesday, Trump administration border czar Tom Homan said Border Patrol encountered just 95 illegal immigrants in a single day and that zero migrants were released into the U.S. last month.

Mike Kennealy, a Republican running for governor who previously served as housing and economic development secretary, blasted the report. 

He said that taxpayers are “being forced to bankroll billions to an unaccountable, broken system that perpetuates the migrant crisis—and we’re fed up,” per the Boston Herald.

Fox News reached out to Healey’s office for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

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“While families are struggling to afford everyday necessities, the state is shelling out $15,166 per family per month. It’s not just insane — it’s offensive.”

The report also notes that 1,599 individuals in the EA system are currently employed, and 2,270 migrants have received work authorizations.

With the fiscal year ending June 30, Massachusetts is likely to exceed $1.06 billion, the report forecasts. 

‘The View’ erupts as Goldberg makes shocking US-Iran comparison in Middle East debate

“The View” co-hosts clashed fiercely during a discussion about the Middle East on Wednesday as co-host Whoopi Goldberg compared living in the United States to Iran, receiving pushback from Alyssa Farah Griffin. 

“Let’s remember too, the Iranians literally throw gay people off of buildings. They don’t adhere to basic human rights,” Griffin said, as she and co-host Sara Haines argued they weren’t going to “defend” a terrorist nation, Iran.

The co-hosts discussed the conflict between Israel and Iran as fighting between the two continues. Co-host Sunny Hostin ripped Israel earlier during the discussion for preemptively striking Iran, calling the move illegal under international law. Goldberg pushed back and invoked historic racism against Blacks in the United States.

“Let’s not do that, because if we start with that, we have been known in this country to tie gay folks to the car. Listen, I’m sorry, they used to just keep hanging Black people,” Goldberg insisted as Griffin pushed back and said the situations weren’t comparable.

WHOOPI GOLDBERG SIGNS OFF ‘THE VIEW’ WITH RALLYING CALL TO ANTI-TRUMP ‘RESISTANCE’

Griffin said, “In the year 2025 in the United States, is nothing like if I step foot wearing this outfit into Iran right now.” 

“It is the same,” Goldberg said. “Murdering someone for their difference is not good whoever does it.” 

Griffin reiterated her point and repeated that living in the U.S. in 2025 was “very different” than living in Iran. 

“Not if you’re Black,” Goldberg insisted and Hostin added, “not for everybody.”

SUNNY HOSTIN CLAIMS US IS A ‘MISOGYNISTIC COUNTRY’ BECAUSE FEMALE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES KEEP LOSING

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Goldberg said that the U.S. was the greatest country in the world but said people were worried about their kids being shot. 

“Nobody wants to diminish the very real problems we have in this country. That’s no one’s intention, but I think it’s important to remember that there are places much darker than this country, and people who deserve rights,” Griffin said. 

Goldberg pushed back again and said, “Not everybody feels that way,” before stating Black people effectively weren’t allowed to vote until 1965. 

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“They don’t have free and fair elections in Iran. It’s not even the same universe,” Griffin argued. 

An exasperated Goldberg at one point said there was no way for her to make her understand her argument. 

Hostin, who called out Israel throughout the exchange, said angrily at another point, “I want to say this so that I don’t get a bunch of hate mail.”

“Criticism of the Israeli government is not antisemitic, okay? I’m criticizing Benjamin Netanyahu, I am criticizing Israel. I’m not an antisemite. Under international criminal law, what is happening is now is not legal. That’s the bottom line,” she said.

Unearthed photos reveal troubling connection between top Dems and CCP ally

FIRST ON FOX: A female educator, pageant winner, and interpreter from China who has multiple ties to the Chinese Communist Party has cozied up to several top Democrats in New York over the last four to five years, a Fox News Digital review found.

Wang Zaozao, who also goes by “Linda,” was born and raised in Anqing, China. After going to school and specializing in “Chinese-English interpretation for three years” in her native country, she moved to the United States to further her education at Columbia University, according to her website bio. Her education then led to her founding the Zao Learning Center in 2018, which caters to the “training of children models/actors with bilingual language skills” and has multiple training centers in New York and Taiwan.

In addition to working as an educator and teaching hundreds of children of Chinese descent in New York, she has been a “bilingual emcee/TV host for about a decade” at dozens of “large-scale cultural events,” which have featured several top Democrats, including New York City Mayor Eric Adams and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. An archived version of Wang’s Zao Center says it provides “excellent learning atmosphere and professional training to set you off to succeed in the mainstream modeling/entertainment industry.”

As part of her educational qualifications, she touts on her website that she has obtained the “Advanced Interpretation Qualification Certificate” and the Teacher Qualification Certificate issued by the Ministry of Education of China (MOE), which is a key organ of the CCP and plays a crucial role in helping “formulate the curriculum” in Chinese schools and abroad for international educational exchanges, according to their website.

FORMER TOP HOCHUL AIDE’S UNEARTHED FAMILY CONNECTIONS TO CCP RAISES ALARM BELLS

The MOE also directs the “construction of the [Chinese Communist] Party in institutions of higher learning” in addition to working with multiple other CCP departments. A 2017 report from The Diplomat revealed that the Ministry of Education spent five years revising liberal arts textbooks in order to emphasize the importance of “socialist core values” for students. The report went on to highlight how “new textbooks focus on strengthening the revolutionary tradition of the CCP.”

“Chinese textbooks include a large number of articles about Mao Zedong, Deng Xiaoping and other CCP leaders,” the report continued. “The new textbooks elaborate on Chinese President Xi Jinping’s more hard-line foreign policy, making sure that the students have a strong sense of China’s territorial situation.”

Wang has posted over 2,000 photos on her Instagram profile, which includes a mix of pageants, Chinese cultural events, and includes several photos with Democratic politicians and CCP diplomats. Earlier this month, she posed for a “selfie” with a smiling Mayor Adams and CCP diplomat Chen Li, who is serving as the consul general of the People’s Republic of China, in New York, at the AAPI Heritage Month parade in Manhattan.

“So happy to reconnect with familiar faces and meet new friends,” said Wang, who has taken several photos with Adams over the years. “Snuck in a quick photo with Consul General Ambassador Chen Li and Mayor Eric Adams before dashing to the next event.”

On June 3, she posted on Instagram that she hosted the 2025 East Coast Chinese Alumni Associations’ Summer picnic and Culture Festival and that it was “such a joy to share the stage with Congressman Josh Gottheimer, the Mayor and Council Members of Palisades Park.”

BLUE STATE GOVERNOR TOUTS MEETING WITH CCP OFFICIAL COZYING UP TO DEMS: ‘GRATEFUL FOR THE OPPORTUNITY’

A Gottheimer spokesperson told Fox News Digital that the Democratic congressman “was invited by a local Chinese American community association and shared the stage with several other people during that event.”

“Congressman Gottheimer and his team have no relationship with the individual in question, and the Congressman is leading multiple pieces of legislation to crack down on the Chinese Communist Party — our known adversary,” the spokesperson continued.

BLUE STATE GOVERNOR TOUTS MEETING WITH CCP OFFICIAL COZYING UP TO DEMS: ‘GRATEFUL FOR THE OPPORTUNITY’

In February, Wang posted a video on stage with Li, who has repeatedly praised the CCP and denied Uyghur genocide, and Schumer at the Brooklyn Lantern Festival Parade. Wang not only served as the parade’s host, but also served as a translator for Schumer’s address.

Schumer came under fire earlier this year for posing with Li at the Lunar New Year Parade. 

Another post from September 2024 shows Wang posing with Rep. Dan Goldman, D-N.Y., at an opera event in New York. A Goldman spokesperson said, “We have no idea who this person is” after Fox News Digital reached out for comment.

“It was my third time hosting the AAPI culture heritage month parade in mid-town Manhattan New York City,” Wang wrote last May with a photo of her and Adams smiling together. “Glad to see [NYC Mayor] Eric Adams again.”

Wang also says she is “currently a consultant to the Association for the Promotion of China’s Peaceful Reunification in New York, and a special reporter for the overseas station of ‘Fujian Daily’ Southeast Network,” which are both directly tied to the CCP.

The Association for the Promotion of China’s Peaceful Reunification in New York has been repeatedly mentioned in reports coordinating with the CCP’s United Front system, which has been called a “magic weapon” by Chinese President Xi Jinping due to its success at advancing the CCP’s interests at home and abroad. According to a 2012 holiday greeting to House and Senate lawmakers, the China Council for the Promotion of Peaceful National Reunification (CCPPNR) formed at least 17 affiliates, including the New York chapter. A 2019 report from the Jamestown Foundation also said the United Front acts as one of the “key executive agents” of the council “to exert control over ethnic Chinese communities abroad.”

“Front organizations such as the CPPRC represent one of the primary mechanisms employed by the CCP in its patient, long-term campaign to undermine the democratic norms and open debate—not only within China itself, but internationally—that the CCP views as threats to its own hold on power,” the report continued.

Fujian Daily Southeast Network, is the same Beijing-backed organization for which Winnie Greco, a disgraced former fundraiser for Adams who served as a special adviser and his director of Asian Affairs, was a consultant. Greco’s home was raided by FBI agents in 2024 amid a federal probe related to political fundraising during Adams’ 2021 campaign. The corruption indictment against Adams was dropped earlier this year. It is unclear whether Greco is in China or New York.

In 2022 and 2023, Wang posted multiple photos posing with Schumer and Adams at various parades, including the Lunar New Year Parade in Chinatown. A few of the 2023 photos that included Schumer thanked him for “always supporting our Chinese community event.” More photos from 2022 show her posing with Mayor Adams, including her attending an Asian Pacific Cultural Heritage month event at Mayor Adams’ mansion.

BROTHER-IN-LAW OF TOP DEM SENATOR PLAYED KEY ROLE IN RECRUITING CHINESE FIRMS TO DEEP BLUE CITY

“New Mayor of NYC! You are our old friend,” Wang captioned a photo on the same day Adams was sworn into office. The event appears to be from a fundraiser for Adams as part of the transition ahead of the inauguration. The photo shows the pair sitting close together and giving a thumbs up while she held a microphone.

Months before becoming the mayor, Wang posted a photo at an Adams fundraiser and said she “hosted the fundraising event for mayoral candidate [Eric Adams.]”

The following month, she posed with New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, who has come under fire for hiring multiple CCP-tied staffers, and Schumer at the Lunar New Year Parade. Fox News Digital exclusively reported earlier this month that a top ex-aide to Hochul was the daughter of a former Chinese journalist whose archived biography says he worked for the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) “Education Department of the News Bureau of the Central Propaganda Department” as a deputy director and served in multiple leadership roles at state-run media outlets.

“Honored to be the host [Eric Adams] is our old friend who listens to us and help[sic] us,” Wang said in a July 2021 Instagram post that includes a photo of Wang holding an Eric L. Adams “Asian Volunteer Group” certificate signed by Adams.

Despite Adams taking several photos with Wang at various events, including earlier this month, hosting a campaign fundraiser for him, and attending at least one event at the mayor’s mansion, a spokesperson for his office distanced the mayor from her, telling Fox News Digital that the “Adams administration does not work with this individual.”

“Thousands of community members take photographs with the Mayor at public events,” the spokesperson added.

Arran Hope, the editor of China Brief at the Jamestown Foundation, sounded the alarm about Wang when Fox News Digital reached out about her CCP ties, noting how she “appears to be deeply involved with organizations in New York City that have strong ties to the Chinese Communist Party’s united front system,” including “anniversary galas for united front organizations such as the U.S.–Fujian Tangtou Friendship Association (美国福建塘头联谊会) and the New York Chapter of the United Chinese American Association (美国华人华侨联合总会纽约分会).”

“Wang’s ties to the CCP go beyond merely compèring events. As reported on the website of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Body, the central united front organization led by a member of the Politburo Standing Committee, Wang is the general secretary (秘书长) of the New York branch of the United Chinese Association of America (美国华人华侨联合总会纽约分会),” Hope said. “She is also an adviser to the New York Association for Peaceful Reunification (纽约中国和平统一促进会) and has been a guest reporter for the overseas coverage of Fujian Daily, a Party media outlet.”

“Her work has been featured in the People’s Daily, the mouthpiece of the CCP Central Committee, and other state outlets,” he continued. “In February 2020, at the outset of the Covid-19 pandemic, she responded to the call of the United Front Work Department to support epidemic prevention measures in China, helping to coordinate sending funds and other items to frontline workers in Wuhan.”

‘COMING FOR US’: EXPERT SOUNDS ALARM ON CCP’S MISSION TO ‘KILL AMERICANS’ AFTER FBI MAKES SHOCKING ARRESTS

In addition to Democrats, Wang posted several photos with Huang Ping, the controversial predecessor to Chen Li who was referenced dozens of times in the unsealed indictment against Gov. Hochul’s former deputy chief of staff, Linda Sun, last year. The unsealed indictment revealed that a speechwriter for then-Lt. Gov. Hochul wanted to mention the “Uyghur situation” in China for her 2021 Lunar New Year message, but the plight of the minority group being persecuted by the Chinese government was ultimately omitted after Sun overruled the speechwriter. 

The indictment says Sun revealed to Ping what the speechwriter wanted to include but insisted that she would not let her boss mention Uyghurs after admitting that she was “starting to lose her temper” with the speechwriter. Ping appeared to chalk up the speechwriter’s suggestion as a clueless American who had never visited China and that U.S.-China relations could “sour” because of “people like the speechwriter,” the indictment said, prompting Sun to concur that the speechwriter had never visited China. Ping would go on to post Hochul’s Lunar New Year message days later on his Facebook page, which did not mention Uyghurs.

In addition to taking several photos with Ping, who has repeatedly called the CCP a “great party,” she revealed on her company website that she was “invited by the Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in New York to teach adult English courses for its staff.”

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“Photos with Ambassador Huang Ping and his beautiful wife and world renowned soprano – Inva Mila,” Wang wrote in September 2024 on Instagram. “It was an honor to share the evening with such esteemed guests and artists.”

“Honored to host the farewell dinner for Ambassador Huang Ping as we celebrate his remarkable contributions to strengthening ties between the U.S. and China,” Wang wrote. “A night to remember, full of warmth, gratitude, and unity.”

In an Instagram post from 2022, Wang posted a “selfie” and said she was “honored to be the MC and met Chinese Counsel General Ambassador Huang Ping at the first Asian Pacific American Cultural Parade.”

Fox News Digital reached out to Wang and the offices of Hochul and Schumer.

Tennis legend Chris Evert criticizes WNBA players after Caitlin Clark incident

Tennis legend Chris Evert needled WNBA players for lack of sportsmanship following Tuesday night’s skirmish that saw Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark get poked in the eye and shoved to the ground in a game against the Connecticut Sun.

Clark and Sun players Marina Mabrey and Tina Charles were hit with technical fouls. Jacy Sheldon was given a flagrant foul. Later, Fever guard Sophie Cunningham appeared to retaliate with a hard foul on Sheldon. Both players were ejected from the game with 40 seconds left.

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Evert was among those who commented on the Clark incident. 

“When will these ladies realize, accept, and appreciate @CaitlinClark22 is the best thing that ever happened to women’s basketball. This is a bad look for the sport and what’s happened to sportsmanship?” Evert wrote on X.

She responded to a social media post made by columnist Christine Brennan, who is set to release a book on Clark next month.

FEVER’S SOPHIE CUNNINGHAM RECEIVES PRAISE FOR HAVING CAITLIN CLARK’S BACK IN WILD GAME VS SUN

“The WNBA continues to fail to meet the moment. Terrible decision to allow Marina Mabrey to stay in the game. People are watching as never before. And this is what they see?” Brennan wrote on X.

It’s far from the first time Clark has been poked, prodded and shoved to the floor. She was hit in the eye during a game against the Sun last year as well – and that’s just been the tip of the iceberg.

Crew chief Ashley Gross spoke to a pool reporter after the game and was asked about the Clark technical foul.

“After the foul by Sheldon, Clark reacted in an unsportsmanlike manner,” Goss said.

Fever coach Stephanie White told reporters after the game she didn’t receive any explanation for the technical foul on Clark.

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She implored WNBA officials to be better in their efforts to control heated matchups.

‘They knew Biden was not competent’: Cruz fumes as Dems abandon fitness hearing

Republican lawmakers on the Senate Judiciary Committee admonished Democratic colleagues for boycotting and walking out of a Wednesday morning hearing examining former President Joe Biden‘s health decline while he was in the Oval Office.

“I will note that few of my Democratic colleagues are here today,” Republican Texas Sen. John Cornyn said Wednesday. “Thank you to Sen. Welch from Vermont for being here, leaving us with no other option than to take the boycott of this hearing as an admission of guilt for their role in this crisis.

“We must not turn away from the search for answers, and it is not an overstatement to say that the future of our country could one day hinge on how we choose to act or not act on this very issue,” Cornyn continued.

The Senate committee held a hearing Wednesday morning dubbed, “Unfit to Serve: How the Biden Cover-up Endangered America and Undermined the Constitution.” 

SENATE HEARING ON WHO WAS ‘REALLY RUNNING’ BIDEN WHITE HOUSE KICKS OFF WEDNESDAY

Vermont Democrat Sen. Peter Welch and Illinois Democrat Sen. Dick Durbin did attend the start of the hearing, with Durbin abruptly walking out after describing the hearing as a distraction and accusing Republican colleagues of being “asleep at the wheel” with other legal issues within the Trump administration due to their focus on Biden. 

“In the last week alone, several events have demanded this committee’s immediate attention,” Durbin said Wednesday. “The horrific assassination in Minnesota, the treatment of our colleague Sen. Padilla by federal agents in Los Angeles, and President Trump’s unprecedented deployment of the U.S. military in Los Angeles.

“We should hear without delay from Attorney General Bondi and FBI Director Patel about what they are doing to address the unacceptable political violence in our country, including threats to Article III judges and justices, as well as members of Congress,” Durbin said. “And we need to hear from the Homeland Security Secretary Noem about the treatment of our colleague, Sen. Padilla, and this administration’s mass deportation campaign against immigrants.” 

Welch also left the hearing after declaring it would not benefit his constituents. 

EX-WHITE HOUSE OFFICIALS TO TESTIFY ON WHO ‘REALLY RAN THE COUNTRY’ DURING BIDEN ERA

There are 10 Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee, including lawmakers such as Sens. Klobuchar of Minnesota, Cory Booker of New Jersey, and Adam Schiff of California. The press secretary for Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats directed Fox Digital to Durbin’s initial participation in the hearing and his remarks when asked about GOP lawmakers arguing Democrats’ boycott of the hearing was an admission of guilt. 

Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz seethed that Democrats and the media “lied” and covered up Biden’s health decline, while slamming Democrats for their lack of participation. 

“Not a single Democrat is here today because not a single one of them gives a d— about the fact that they lied to the American people for four years,” Cruz said at the hearing. “They knew. Every one of them knew that Joe Biden was mentally not competent to do the job. The White House press secretary, she knew, when she stood in front of the American people and lied over and over and over again. And they’re not here because they can’t defend themselves. It wasn’t a surprise, for four years, the White House hid President Biden from Republican senators. Would not let him meet with us.” 

Other Republicans railed against Democratic counterparts for skipping the hearing, such as Missouri Republican Sen. Eric Schmidt. 

“Today, as we seek to answer this question, it is deeply disappointing, but not surprising, that most Democrats on this committee have chosen all but boycott the hearing and failed to call a single witness,” Schmidt said at the hearing. “They have chosen to ignore this issue like they ignored President Biden’s decline. Their absence speaks volumes, an implicit admission that the truth is too inconvenient to face. By refusing to engage in this critical examination, they abdicate their responsibility to the American people. This de facto boycott is not just a refusal to participate. It’s a refusal to serve the American people who deserve answers about who was truly leading their government.

“The title of the hearing, ‘Unfit to Serve,’ captures a sobering and undeniable truth,” Schmidt added. “President Biden was mentally unfit to carry out the responsibilities of the most powerful office in the world. Given his mental incapacity, the American people deserve to know who was running the country the last four years.”

SENATE REPUBLICANS PLAN HEARING ON BIDEN’S ALLEGED COGNITIVE DECLINE COVER-UP

The hearing included testimony from three experts, including University of Virginia law professor John Harrison, conservative think tank Heritage Foundation fellow Theodore Wold, and a former White House press secretary from the first Trump administration, Sean Spicer. 

Concern over Biden’s mental acuity hit a fever pitch in 2024 as the election cycle heated up, when the then-president delivered a dismal debate performance against now-President Donald Trump in June. The debate opened the floodgates of criticism, including traditional Democrat allies calling for Biden to drop out of the presidential race after conservatives had already long argued that Biden’s mental acuity was slipping and he was unfit to serve as commander in chief.

Concerns over his health have continued after his presidential tenure ended, including with the revelation that the Biden admin frequently used an autopen to sign official presidential documents, the release of Biden’s interview with former Special Counsel Robert Hur, and Biden’s shock announcement in May that he had advanced prostate cancer.

The conservative Heritage Foundation’s Oversight Project first investigated the Biden administration’s use of an autopen earlier in 2025 and found that the same signature was on a bevvy of executive orders and other official documents, while Biden’s signature on the document announcing his departure from the 2024 race varied from the apparent machine-produced signature.

SCOOP: GOP PUSH FOR NEW HOUSE COMMITTEE TO PROBE BIDEN DECLINE ‘COVER-UP’ GAINS STEAM

Heritage fellow Wold testified before the committee and described the alleged cover-up of Biden’s declining health a “constitutional crisis.”

“I will say the 25th Amendment. It’s a modern contrivance, but it still is consistent with the American Constitution, which assumes that officers of the United States will act virtuously and morally,” Wold said. “And the idea that members of the Cabinet would go to the length of avoiding the Oval Office so as to abdicate their responsibility to verify the appropriateness of the president’s acuity or the ability to authenticate actions taken by the president. If that’s not a constitutional scandal, I honestly, I don’t know what would what would constitute such.

“There could be the potential for crimes,” he said. “But moreover, the 25th Amendment can only function in its sole mechanisms if people are actually willing to call a spade a spade.” 

BIDEN’S SENILITY SCANDAL LEADS TOP REPUBLICAN TO DEMAND DOJ PROBE INTO ‘REPRESENTATIONS’ TO PUBLIC

The U.S. Constitution’s 25th Amendment states that “whenever the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive departments or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President.” 

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Biden’s Cabinet, other administration officials and Democrat lawmakers fiercely defended his health amid outcry from Republicans and others that Biden’s health had cratered and that he was likely unfit to serve as president.

Fed Chair Powell announces decision on rate hikes after mounting pressure from Trump

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday said that it will leave its benchmark interest rate unchanged following its June monetary policy meeting as policymakers continue to monitor inflation and labor market data amid elevated economic uncertainty.

The central bank’s decision leaves the benchmark federal funds rate at a range of 4.25% to 4.5%. It comes after the Fed left rates at that level at its three prior meetings in January, March and May. The central bank cut rates at its final three meetings last year, which involved a 50-basis-point cut in September and a pair of 25-basis-point reductions in November and December.

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), which guides the central bank’s monetary policy moves, noted in its announcement that, “Although swings in net exports have affected the data, recent indicators suggest that economic activity has continued to expand at a solid pace.”

“The unemployment rate remains low, and labor market conditions remain solid. Inflation remains somewhat elevated,” the FOMC statement noted. Policymakers added that uncertainty about the economic outlook “has diminished but remains elevated” and that the Fed is “attentive to the risks to both sides of its dual mandate,” which is to pursue maximum employment and stable prices with long-run inflation at 2%.

TRUMP SLAMS ‘STUPID’ FED CHAIR JEROME POWELL AHEAD OF INTEREST RATE DECISION

FOMC policymakers also released a summary of economic projections, known as the so-called “dot plot,” which showed members see two interest rate cuts in 2025, followed by one cut each in 2026 and 2027. 

They also project PCE inflation will rise to 3% this year before declining to 2.4% in 2026 and 2.1% the following year. Real gross domestic product (GDP) is seen as slowing to 1.4% in 2025 before growth picks up to 1.6% next year and 1.8% in 2027. Unemployment is seen as rising to 4.5% in 2025 and 2026, before dipping to 4.4% in 2027.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said in remarks during a post-announcement press conference that “despite elevated uncertainty, the economy is in a solid position” as the “unemployment rate remains low and the labor market is at or near maximum employment. Inflation has come down a great deal, but has been running somewhat above our 2% longer-run objective.”

He added that the Fed’s “current stance of monetary policy leaves us well positioned to respond in a timely way to potential economic developments.” 

WILL PRESSURE FROM TRUMP AND VANCE SPUR POWELL TO CUT INTEREST RATES?

Powell also discussed policymakers’ views on how tariffs implemented by the Trump administration will impact inflation, saying that, “The effects of tariffs will depend, among other things, on their ultimate level. Expectations of that level and thus, of the related economic effects, reached a peak in April and have since declined. Even so, increases in tariffs this year are likely to push up prices and weigh on economic activity.”

“The effects on inflation could be short-lived, reflecting a one-time shift in the price level. It’s also possible that inflationary effects could instead be more persistent,” he added. “Avoiding that outcome will depend on the size of the tariff effects, on how long it takes for them to pass through fully into prices, and ultimately on keeping longer-term inflation expectations well-anchored.”

The Fed chair was asked about the timing of the impact of tariffs on inflation data, which has been limited to date amid the administration’s delays to some tariffs.

TRUMP EYES CABINET MEMBER TO REPLACE ‘MR TOO LATE’ POWELL AT THE FED: REPORT

“We’ve had three months of favorable inflation readings since the high readings of January and February, and that’s, of course, highly welcome news,” Powell said, noting that services inflation have trended down. “We’ve had inflation goods just moving a bit… we do expect to see more of that over the course of the summer.”

“It takes some time for tariffs to work their way through the chain of distribution to the end consumer. A good example of that would be goods being sold at retailers today may have been imported several months ago before tariffs were imposed. So we’re beginning to see some effects, and we do expect to see more of them over the coming months,” he said.

“Many companies do expect to put all – some or all of the effect of tariffs through to the next person in the chain and ultimately to the consumer,” Powell said.

President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticized Powell and the Fed for not lowering interest rates, including comments Wednesday calling Powell “a stupid person.” 

The chair declined to weigh in on Trump’s comments and said that he and the FOMC are focused on facilitating “a good, solid American economy with a strong labor market and price stability.” He also said he’s focused solely on monetary policy and not whether he will continue to serve as a Fed governor if the president, as expected, opts against reappointing him to another term as chair.

GOLDMAN SACHS SAYS UNDERMINING CENTRAL BANK INDEPENDENCE HAS ECONOMIC REPERCUSSIONS

Powell was asked by FOX Business Network’s Edward Lawrence whether current economic data indicates there should be a rate cut. 

“Monetary policy has to be forward-looking – that is elementary… We always talk about the incoming data, the evolving outlook, and the balance of risks. And we say that over and over and over again,” Powell replied. “The economy seems to be in solid shape, so the labor market is not crying out for a rate cut.” 

“Businesses, you know, were in a bit of shock after April 2, but you see business sentiment, you talk to business people. There’s a very different feeling now that people are working their way through this, and they understand how they’re going to go and it feels much more positive and constructive than it did three months ago,” he added.

Chief economist for Comerica Bank Bill Adams said in a statement following the Fed’s announcement that, “In short, the FOMC decisions signals that the FOMC still think they could cut rates this year, but are less confident about that view than they were before April’s tariff hikes and the outbreak of the Israel-Iran war.”

“The Fed doesn’t have great tools to combat stagflationary shocks like tariff hikes or disruptions to the supply of oil from the Mideast,” Adams added.

Cory Stahle, senior economist at the Indeed Hiring Lab, noted that the Fed’s perspective appears to be that “substantial ongoing uncertainty paired with a good-enough-for-now labor market is ample justification to continue its wait-and-see approach.”

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The market’s expectations surrounding the Fed’s next rate cut shifted slightly following the decision. The probability of the Fed leaving rates unchanged again in July rose from 83% to 89%, per the CME FedWatch tool. Meanwhile, the odds of a 25-basis-point rate cut in September rose from 53% to over 61%.

The Federal Reserve’s next monetary policy meeting is scheduled for July 29-30.

Sotomayor fires off blistering dissent as court upholds transgender treatment ban

Justice Sonia Sotomayor blasted six of her colleagues on the Supreme Court in a blistering dissent on Wednesday for deciding to uphold a Tennessee law banning specific transgender medical treatments for minors.

Sotomayor said the 6-3 decision in United States v. Skrmetti, issued along ideological lines, improperly discriminated against minors based on their sex. The liberal justice made the atypical move to read her dissent from the bench.

Sotomayor, who was appointed to the court by former President Barack Obama, said the majority “refuses to call a spade a spade” and “obfuscates a sex classification” to allow the Tennessee bill to withstand constitutional tests.

SUPREME COURT APPEARS DIVIDED OVER STATE BANS ON GENDER TRANSITION ‘TREATMENTS’ FOR MINORS

“The Court’s willingness to do so here does irrevocable damage to the Equal Protection Clause and invites legislatures to engage in discrimination by hiding blatant sex classifications in plain sight,” Sotomayor said. “It also authorizes, without second thought, untold harm to transgender children and the parents and families who love them.”

The case, which was one of the most closely watched of the high court’s term, arose from the Biden administration suing over a bill Tennessee passed in 2023 to ban puberty blockers and hormone therapy as treatments for minors who identify as transgender.

SCOTUS RULES ON STATE BAN ON GENDER TRANSITION ‘TREATMENTS’ FOR MINORS IN LANDMARK CASE

Sotomayor, whose dissent was joined by Justices Ketanji Brown Jackson and Elena Kagan, said doctors would offer such medical treatments based on a patient having gender dysphoria. A law banning that practice requires a heightened level of scrutiny that the Supreme Court’s majority recklessly did not apply, Sotomayor alleged.

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“The majority subjects a law that plainly discriminates on the basis of sex to mere rational-basis review,” Sotomayor wrote. “By retreating from meaningful judicial review exactly where it matters most, the Court abandons transgender children and their families to political whims. In sadness, I dissent.”

The Supreme Court’s decision effectively allows states who pass laws like Tennessee‘s to ban certain medical treatments for minors.

Officials begin excavation of mass grave containing remains of 800 babies

Irish officials have begun excavating the grounds of a former home for unwed mothers which authorities say contains the remains of around 800 babies and young children who died there. 

“It’s a very, very difficult, harrowing story and situation,” Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin said Monday. “We have to wait to see what unfolds now as a result of the excavation.”

MYSTERIOUS ‘DUMPED’ BODIES OF WOMAN AND CHILD FOUND BY ARCHAEOLOGISTS IN PICTURESQUE TOWN

The former Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home in western Ireland — which closed in 1961 and was run by Catholic nuns — was one of many mother-and-baby homes during the 20th century in the European country. The homes housed unmarried pregnant women as well as tens of thousands of orphans, according to The Associated Press.

Historian Catherine Corless tracked down death certificates in 2014 for nearly 800 children who died at the Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home between the 1920s and 1961. However, she could only find a burial record for one child, the AP reported. 

ARCHAEOLOGISTS MAKE GRIM DISCOVERY AFTER FINDING ANCIENT ROMAN BUILDINGS

A mass grave was later discovered by investigators in an underground sewage structure at the home. DNA analysis found the structure contained the remains of infants and young children between the ages of 35 weeks gestation and 3 years old, according to the AP.

Family members and survivors will soon have the opportunity to view the works, according to Daniel MacSweeney, who is leading the exhumation of the infant remains.

“This is a unique and incredibly complex excavation,” MacSweeney said in a statement.

ARCHAEOLOGISTS UNEXPECTEDLY UNCOVER HUNDREDS OF SKELETONS, MEDIEVAL CHURCH BENEATH UNIVERSITY CAMPUS

Any remains recovered from the site will be analyzed and preserved by forensic experts. Identified remains will be returned to family members, while unidentified remains will be buried. The work is expected to take two years to complete, the AP reported.

The sisters who ran the former Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home previously offered a “profound apology,” acknowledging they failed to protect the dignity of the women and children that lived there, according to the AP.

In 2021, Prime Minister Martin issued a former state apology after a report found that 9,000 children died in 18 mother-and-baby homes during the 20th century in Ireland.

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Daniel MacSweeney and Ireland’s National Police and Security Service, An Garda Síochána, did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.